Tales of Darkness & Sin - Pepper Winters Page 0,203

I tried to ignore him but that was as impossible as ignoring an asteroid plummeting to earth.

“Reception. How may I help you?”

Cas’s eyes took full advantage, latching onto my breasts. The way he ogled made the expensive underwear between my legs grow shamefully damp.

“Hello, Mr. Smith. Are you there?” the chirpy female voice prompted in my ear.

Mr. Smith?

Ah, yes. The stranger I’d agreed to sleep with.

Tearing my eyes off him, I said, “Yes, hi. I seem to have locked myself out of my room during the fire alarm. I need another key.”

“Oh, I’m sorry, this isn’t Mr. Smith?”

“Do I sound like I’m a man?” My heart fluttered. “Sorry, that came out a bit rude.”

The receptionist giggled. “No, ma’am, you don’t. Sorry for the mix-up. Do you mind advising me of your room number, so I can confirm the necessary details?”

I hooked my hand over the mouthpiece. For some reason I didn’t like the thought of spilling my privacy—now that we’d established the ‘rules’, it seemed like an invasion—not to me but for him to listen.

“Ma’am? Who is the room registered to?”

There was no way around it. “The room is under Lucy Larson.”

The gentle sound of sheets rustling behind me made the hairs on the back of my neck stand up. Was he wondering why I’d given him one name but used another? Too bad. He’d lost the right to ask questions when he decided he wanted to remain clueless.

The tap-tap-tapping of computer keys came down the phone. “I’m sorry, ma’am, there is no room under that name. Is there another name perhaps?”

I slouched in the chair. They must’ve amended the guest name after the problem with my inability to provide identification.

I looked over my shoulder at Cas. He sat upright, curiosity blazing in his eyes. He didn’t hide that he was listening.

“Ma’am? Perhaps you can come down to the lobby to confirm the correct details?”

“No, that’s not possible.”

There was a pause. “Um, well, we really need to confirm your identity before we can approve a new key. Are you sure you can’t come—”

“The room might be under Saffron Duncan.”

A soft shuffle from the bed as Cas shifted to the edge. His jaw clenched, eyes dark.

Every thought shot from my head. Damn him for being so distracting.

“And the room number?”

“1346.”

I couldn’t concentrate—completely obsessed by the seething sensuality of the man behind me.

I glared at Cas, who was now perched on the end of the bed, his fingers steepled in front of his lips, blue eyes narrowed and sharp.

What was his issue?

“Look, can you just send housekeeping or something with a spare?”

Silence for a moment before the woman said, “I’m afraid our housekeepers are dealing with another issue. We’ll have another key coded the minute the problems have been fixed.”

“Problems?”

My heart skipped, thinking my credit card had declined or something dreadful had happened. What if she saw through my façade and was about to say I would be kicked out on the street in ten minutes?

Cas inched closer, invading my personal space with his intensity.

“Our computers are down due to the electricity short that set off the fire alarm. I won’t be able to use the software to key your card until it’s up and running again.”

I sighed heavily, looking over at Cas. His eyes were hooded, never rising from my scantily dressed hips.

“How long?” I whispered.

“I’ll call you the moment it’s complete. In the meantime, I’ll send up some complimentary champagne and some desserts, to apologise for the inconvenience. Please let me know if there is anything else I can do.”

She hung up before I could tell her exactly what I thought of the inconvenience.

Cas frowned as I put the phone back on its cradle. “What’s going on?”

“Apparently you’ve scored some champagne and desserts, while I have to intrude on your hospitality for an indefinite period of time due to the hotel’s technology being non-operational.”

He chuckled. “It seems you wouldn’t be able to leave even if you had second thoughts. I call that fate.”

“It’s not fate,” I hissed.

He tilted his head. “Ah, yes. You don’t like that word. Call it divine intervention, then. The universe planted you in my path and kept you at my mercy because it wants us to fuck. It’s meant to be.”

Holy God, every word lashed me with delectable torture. “What if they still haven’t given me a key by the morning? Won’t that mean I’m intruding on your life? Crossing boundaries you don’t want crossed?”

He shook his head, plucking me from the chair with possessive hands.